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Friday, 10 March 2017

Glowing reviews for Out of Poland

Out of Poland – when the best revenge
is to have survived

Jenny Harrison

For decades the leather suitcase lay
hidden under the house. When opened, it revealed letters, photographs and documents all in
Polish and therefore inaccessible. Many years later one letter, written in
1946, was translated and the awful truth revealed.
The letters and documents told the story of the Siegel family who had lived in
a small Polish village until the Germans came.One son escaped and
arrived in New Zealand where he made a life for himself, not knowing he had
left his entire family to perish in the gas chambers. It is also the story of
the beautiful daughter who could have been saved but chose to go with her
parents to the gas chamber so that they didn't have to face it alone.
It is the story of love and loyalty, of the betrayal of trust and
of compassion.
It is also the story of the worst crime in our history and how it
brought out the best in some people - but also the worst.

I met Michael
Siegel in about 2001, he told me of the suitcase that had been hidden under
their childhood house and only recently recovered. I asked the family if I
might investigate and see if it was possible to write a book about it. The
letters needed to be translated and a good friend, Eva Scherer, came to my
rescue. It was a gruelling journey for her too, reading those letters, as her
Gentile family also had a bleak history in Poland; the “dark” land where so
many, both Jews and Gentiles, had perished.
I only became aware of the tension between Polish Jews and Gentiles through my
research and my conversations with the Siegel family. As I discovered that many
Polish Gentiles rescued Jews during the Holocaust so my standing with the
family deteriorated. This was not what they had been told.

It has been a
long and difficult journey. I feel privileged that, of all the millions of
anonymous victims of Hitler, I have been able to get to know and cherish this
one family. By remembering them I can honour all those who will forever remain
anonymous.

Reviews:

Michelle:I've just finished your book. I'm
awed, humbled, inspired, chastened. What a remarkable, heart-filled, well
researched, powerful, sensitive, beautiful work of compassion! I don't want to muddy the waters with too many
words; but I want you to know that I think it's one of the best books I've ever
read. What a gift you've crafted for so many people, Jenny! Wow. ❤️

Ann R:
Now I understand why this was such a difficult book for you to write. You have
told the family's story with integrity, humbleness and truth. Not a pretty
story due to the topic, but one that has helped me to understand the plight of
the Jewish community in Poland more fully. You have done an amazing job getting
this book to print - a tragic story told beautifully. Once I started reading it
I couldn't put it down. I hope many, many people read it. Thank you for sharing
this story.

Bev R: Well done on a powerful and
impeccably research piece of work! The historical facts are dramatic but the
present day effects are equally riveting as you go through the process of
writing and dealing with the family. Great human interest. It stands as a
strong testament to the lost souls who need to be remembered. You’ve been
deeply respectful of the family and they should be proud of your work.

Brenda:Culture, fiction and fact collide as Jenny Harrison takes us on an
emotional journey as she sensitively tells the story of one man, family, city
and country caught in unspeakable events that precipitated WWII. Part detective
story, she draws together fragmented and scanty evidence found in a hidden suitcase,
symbolic of a family torn apart. Bit by bit she uncovers the story of
Naftali Siegel, the eldest son of a Polish Jewish family. Born in Pruchnik,
he is sent by his family to Italy in 1933 to train as a vet. Once qualified he
had the good fortune to be assisted in 1938 by the Commission for the Relief of
Jews in Italy, who forged documents for him to emigrate to Australia, and then
to New Zealand. He appears to have tried to help his family or at least
his sister Malka escape from Poland. Malka could pass as an Aryan German,
and had an offer of a forged passport and papers. Far away from the war,
it was not until 1959 that Naftali discovered that Malka had, in
1942, been gassed with her family in Belzec extermination camp. Speakingher truth quietly, Jenny shows that speaking
of the unspeakable is an essential first step in healing of deep emotional
wounds.

Amazon Customer:Superb! Brilliant book
that opened my eyes and showed me things I never even considered. Very well
written!

John R: Well
written and well researched on relations of Jews and Poles over centuries.

Ken J: The book to say the least is so interesting I could
not put it down. I gave it to a friend whose grandfather was German and had, I
think, relatives in Poland and he found it the same, so enthralling.

Gavin: This is a fascinating, well
researched and well written story that draws you in and makes you want to keep
reading into the early hours of the morning to see how the lives of the Siegel
family will unfold. This is a story of Naftali, his family but also a story of
the author's research and interaction with the family. A riveting read that I
couldn't put down till the last page was turned.

1 comment:

Fantastic Jenny. Well done, I concur with all the comments and you deserve them. You should be proud of this book. It was one of the hardest to write and you handled both the subject matter and the family's feelings with respect. Congratulations